Four Years
by Labby01
Summary: It only takes four years to see how the results of one wish will change the lives of everyone. Four years of memories leading to a road of destruction and darkness. For some the change will be triumphant, for others the change will bring upon despair.
1. Chapter 1

A hooded man steps along a long stone pathway with much dignity and triumph in his step. A smile appears on his face, one only visible to himself and those up above, as his followers lead behind him, always sure not to stare at any part of him for too long.

There is fear, there is regret, and there is pride amongst the group of followers so aptly named The Death Eaters. They have done their job, but most of them did so mistakenly. More than half of the group was under the mind-controlling Imperious Curse, losing their own actions to the most evil power of all time. Their choices are still controlled, though their minds are aware of what they have done and they regret it.

The sky is dark, though it is not night and those still alive believe that it is going to stay that way for awhile. The dementors created the fog, but the darkness was fully formed by the leader of the group, and he is going to want to keep the darkness for awhile. It is to show his dominance and to show his rule. No one will step out of line because of it. No one will step out of line anyways, but Voldemort is not one to prove points in a minimal way. He will force the point through.

"It is over," he whispers, and a crowd of cheers forms, many out of force, rather than sheer joy, though he still has his loyal supporters. "We have won."

The cheer continues, but Voldemort does not join in. He keeps his back turned to his group of allies. This moment he wants to himself because it is only because of his own power that this moment has come. His supporters helped, but he is the one that formed them in the first place. To be such a man of power has been his aim since a little boy and now the time has finally come. He has defeated the Wizarding World. The entire world is at his hands now, or at least it would be soon.

"Snape, is the old man surely dead?" Voldemort turns around swiftly, focusing his attention on the proud man.

Snape is caught off guard for a moment, taking a moment to answer, but eventually answers, "Yes, sir."

"I don't want any mistakes now. Are you sure?" Voldemort is not going to make the same mistake twice. Dumbledore has to be dead. He is the only man capable of defeating him. Even if the rest of the Wizarding World were dead, Dumbledore would be a threat.

"I am sure," Snape says confidently. He has done a thorough job this time. He would not make the same mistake as his wife, Narcissa, made. "His final remains have been destroyed."

Voldemort breaths a sigh of relief. He knows Snape is the one he could trust to do the job well, however he will still take another look at the memory of Dumbledore's destruction. He can never be too sure about something. He will study his enemy, for now he has time. Time to plan before taking over the rest of the world.

"You have proven yourself to be worthy," Voldemort says, forcing out as much as a compliment as he can.

"Thank you sir." Snape bows as he speaks. "I assure you that I will continue to serve you well, master."

"I have no doubts that you will," Voldemort answers a bit distracted. He has no need for friends and he wishes to get rid of them at that point. He wants the world for himself. As soon as the movement to rid the world of muggles is over, he will have that. The world is his, and he can feel it at the tip of his fingers. It is almost time.

And there is no one alive that can stop him.


	2. September 4

_September 4, 1976_

A sloppy-haired, hazel eyed boy walks with fierce steps forward. He forces his shoulders ahead of him, anchoring them with power and confidence. He tries to appear more muscular than he actually is, but little does he know the girl he is heading towards doesn't particularly like boys that do that.

He walks to the part of the table she is seated at, and he keeps his stride long as he does so. He is aiming to amaze her, and he wants to do it in just the right way.

She is easy to spot from the crowd and he notices her right away, her bright red hair sticking out like the sun on a summer's day. But even without the red hair, he would notice her. Because she is everything to her. She just doesn't know it yet.

He reaches the end of the lunch table. She is in deep conversation with her friends, her white teeth showing every time she smiles. And she has a gorgeous smile. Really she does.

His heart begins beating fiercely, while he tries to calm his nerves. Whenever he even goes near her, he has difficulty keeping his composure. That's why he's never had a real conversation with her before.

If only someone would talk about her with him. Sirius is never helpful with conversations about girls because he never is serious about his relationships. And Peter… well Peter is a special case. Peter is a good friend, but not one that James can talk to in confidence with. He needs someone else, but James and Peter are all that he has.

She turns towards him for a second. Her vibrant green eyes look up at him and catch his eye. Their eyes are locked and he grows nervous. He pushes his right hand through his unruly hair, flashes a smirk at her, and looks away.

As soon as he looks away, his face falls to a look of regret. His eyes drop to gaze at the ground, his smile falling flat. What is he thinking? And why can't he say anything to her?

The conversation between the four friends seems to die down for a second, but James tries not to pay attention as he walks away. He doesn't care. He can't care.

"Did you want something, Potter?" His face peeks up. His eyes brighten. It's her voice. And her voice saying his name. She knows his name. She knows him.

He looks at her. But what should he say? She actually is speaking to him, staring directly at him. This is his chance. This has to be it. "D-d-did we have a-a-any Potions homework?" he stutters. At least he found something to say. Some words came from his lips, and he thought they were mostly recognizable.

"That's all you wanted?" the angel asks.

"Yeah," he answers.

No. Not really.

"Can't you ask Black? Or that other friend of yours?"

"Oh yeah," he responds, a bit shaken up. That was a stupid thing to say.

He starts to walk away, ashamed of how he acted in front of her. He could never ask out Lily Evans. Not now. Not ever. What is his problem?

"Didn't you want to ask me something else?" she asks. So she does know. She probably has seen him staring at her one too many times. The rumours do spread easily in the school.

He turns again, facing her, trying to block out the gaggle of girls surrounding her. They all look intimidating.

"Like what?" he asks, annoyed that she can read him so well.

"You want to go on a date, right?" she finally asks. Her intuition has always been good.

Yes. Yes. Yes. He is relieved. She can read him. That is good. Good when he is so nervous.

But why does he say, "Ew… no way. Why would I want that?" before shrugging his should and walking off?

_September 4, 1977_

I don't understand it," James says, chewing as he spoke. "Why do girls like Lily Evans go out with boys like him?" James points outside the window of The Three Broomsticks, where the redhead he most certainly fancies walks hand-in-hand with a skinny boy of average height and sandy-yellow hair.

Sirius laughs, taking a bite, or rather a slurp of his soup. "Who is that kid anyways? I don't think I've ever seem him around."

"Lupin's boy," Peter answers on cue. "Remus, I think. He's a brainiac. Reads all the time and does all his work. They've been going out for several months."

James and Sirius both laugh again, James trying to guard the notion that he already knew that. The three continue to eat, slurping their soup and eating their sandwiches in massive bites, rather than small, delicate pieces.

"I thought you didn't like her." Sirius suddenly realizes. "Didn't you embarrass yourself in front of her last year?"

"I don't like her," James denies. "I think she's pretty. Too pretty for a guy like Lupin."

"Oh well," Sirius says. "At least it's not Snape anymore."

"I heard he's officially in line with You-Know-Who," Peter comments. "He got the mark a couple of days ago."

"I didn't think he wanted anything to do with him," James says, shifting his position. "Lily always bragged that he was a good Slytherin."

"That must have been where it went wrong," Sirius says. "It's been several months since their break-up. Lily was the only one keeping him away from the Dark Arts, and I bet he finally realized she was completely and utterly done with him."

"At least she can see his true colours now," James says. "She's got to realize that Snivellus is no good for her."

Peter and Sirius shake their heads in agreement, both wanting to comment more about the man, but knowing not to. Snape has been the victim of many of their pranks, which probably would have been their next topic of conversation, but does not come up today. Now that Snape is officially a Death Eater, they knew not to mess with him. Voldemort is on the rise and though the three Marauders are capable of a showdown against Snape, they are not ready to mess with Voldemort. Only Dumbledore could defeat him.

"Want to think of some prank against Lupin?" Peter finally speaks, sensing the fright between the group of friends, whom are usually at ease.

Sirius smiles briefly, but the flicker eventually fades from his face. James doesn't show any sign of happiness, ultimately being the one of the two to answer, "No, that's okay. There's more to worry about in life than pranks."

Peter has difficulty in believing that, though Sirius can sense his friend's thoughts. The times are a changing and not for the better. They will be out of school soon and they know a fight of an evil power is coming up. It is in the air. It is all around them. And it affects everyone, even the biggest pranksters of the school.

_September 4, 1978_

I'm ecstatic. It's actually going to happen. Me, the nerdy boy. I can't help but to think of those that I beat out.

Severus, the best mate from childhood. I didn't think they'd ever breakup, but something happened and later he turned bad. That was my lucky break.

But she also liked James at one point. I knew that, and I knew not to push my luck. But he screw it up too. He didn't go after her. For whatever reason, I don't know. Even she knew he liked her. It was so obvious. It was like something was holding her back. And I think it's because of me. She is destined for me.

I really believe it. I see her next to me at night and it just feels right. She lights up my world. Her smile can make me melt. However clichéd, it's true.

I've loved her since the day she asked me out. That day was magical.

She had been single for almost all of sixth year. She and Severus had broken up over the summer and James never took his opportunity with her. Sure, I liked her, but I was too nervous to do much more than talk and interact with her in Potions class and sometimes in Defense Against the Dark Arts. We did have several classes together because both of us had passed many O.W.L.S., but those classes were the smallest. Those were the classes that we had the biggest possibility to interact.

And we did.

There were only seven of us that passed O.W.L. Potions level at the end of sixth year. It was Lily, Severus, but he interacted only by himself, the Marauders, but they mostly paid attention to themselves, Julia Reynolds, another Ravenclaw, and me. Lily and I worked together most of the time. We were the only ones that worked relatively well together.

Potions wasn't my best subject, but it was Lily's. She always knew just how to mix everything so it came together perfectly. She wouldn't even follow the rules, creating her own spell of perfection.

Severus was like that too, but he was a little less perfect than she was. And with my extra help, we always created something better than Severus did.

But one day in Potions class, Lily asked me out. I don't think she was planning to, but it slipped out and I accepted.

It was the day we were working on the Draught of Peace and for some reason something was wrong with her that day. Even Slughorn's attempt at a special prize for the best potion didn't help her.

Severus was working by himself as usual, James and Sirius worked together, Peter and Julia worked together, and Lily and I worked together, going through the ingredients and gathering them together. Then, we added them according to the directions, but after a certain step it just didn't look right.

"What can't I do anything right today?" Lily complained and sighed, lowering the temperature of the flame out of frustration. I was sure at that point that something was definitely wrong with Lily, but I didn't want to pry into her life. I didn't know her well enough, even if we interacted most of the time in Potions class.

"Aren't we missing the hellebore?" I asked, realizing that was never an ingredient we brought over.

"Of course!" she said, delighted by the sudden epiphany I brought on for her. She ran over to the supplies, took the hellebore, and waited an extra minute for the potion to continue simmering. We were lucky that hellebore was the last ingredient to add, as the potion is very systematic and we would have been completely off if it was supposed to be put in earlier in the potion.

The minute passed and Lily put the syrup of hellebore in. Instantaneously, a silvery vapour appeared… the correct look for the potion.

"Wonderful!" Slughorn said, looking over Lily's shoulder at the perfect potion. A large smile appeared on Lily's face, though I just smiled on the inside. I didn't like to show my joy too much when I was in school. "That's perfect! Even Snape didn't get it correctly."

Lily's face erupted with even more cheer, her eyes eventually running over to Severus, whose arms were crossed. He stood in a sigh. "Take that, Sevvy!" she whispered, so that only I could hear.

"That's one of the best Draught of Peace potions I've ever seen. For brewing it correctly, I'll give you both a phial of your own potion. It should come in handy with finals coming up."

I rarely get to keep my own potion, and I planned on just keeping mine somewhere in my room, so I could look at it and see how well I had done. Lily, on the other hand, seemed to want to use hers.

"This is perfect," she said, taking a hold of the phial. "It's exactly what I need. I've been so stressed lately. At least this will calm me down. Thanks Remus."

It brightened my day to hear a compliment from Lily Evans. I really did like her at that point, and I blushed. "You're welcome," I said, now showing a smile.

At that point, a large explosion erupted from Sirius and James's table. Their potion was terrible as usual. Liquid poured out everywhere and it was a disaster. It was something that Slughorn easily cleaned up, but they still shouldn't have led their potion to that point. Those two were terrible.

The classroom cleared out quickly after the explosion, allowing us to be the only two left inside besides Slughorn. We began to gather our stuff when Lily said, "How'd you like to go out sometime, Remus? Like on a date?"

It was so easy for her to say. It came out so naturally and she seemed so assured of her words. I didn't want to see her upset again, and I was euphoric that she even asked, so I shyly answered, "I'd love that."

That day happened and neither of us ever looked back. We've never fought. We've never bickered. We're perfect together. But still, on the night before our wedding I can't help but to feel like the luckiest man in the world because Lily picked me.

_September 4, 1979_

A dark-haired young man sits upon a bar stool, his groggy grey eyes red and swollen. He slams the drink in front of him across the table, demanding more.

"And be generous in your portioning," he adds to his demand.

The young bartender nods his head, quite fearful of the man. He walked into the bar only about two hours ago, with a frightening grin and frantic pace. And when he sat down in the stool he currently occupies, it seemed as the sky turned completely dark outside. It began to rain and the thunder and lightening terrified the sky and the crowd outside. People began to fill inside the bar to avoid the bad weather, but just as soon as it was filled, it emptied. It seems as if the disgruntled man had some kind of effect on people. Every time someone stars upon his grey eyes, they have an urge to leave. And he doesn't even seem to notice the bar clearing out or the women and men leaving because of him. He just takes drink after drink from the bartender.

"What kind of place is this?" a semi-chubby man of about the same age of the disgruntled man walks into the bar and asks. "What are you doing here, Sirius?"

The bartender takes a deep breath, relieved that someone knows this man. He has been too much of a coward to ask him to leave, but at least now he has an ally. Hopefully this man, more likely young man can convince his friend to leave.

The dark-haired man grumbles. He picks up the refilled glass, grips it tightly, and pours it quickly into his throat, lackadaisically dripping portions all over his unevenly shaved beard that is beginning to cover his face all too much.

"That's enough, Sirius," the chubby man says, pulling the glass away from him as soon as Sirius puts it down.

The bartender, who has a tag displaying the name_ Aaron_ on his shirt, begins to become worried, thinking that Sirius is going to go at his friend for taking away the drink. Luckily, Sirius does not seem to care. Instead of fighting, he reaches out for his friend, trying to cling to him. The chubby man touches him and sits down next to him.

And within sections, the man by the name of Sirius begins to tear up. With the chubby man's touch of comfort, the tears flow down, touch upon the long dark strands of unevenly shaven hair that forms a newly grown beard and moustache. The tears well up and stick along his cheeks, his black hair, looking more grayish with the addition of tears.

"I failed him," Sirius whispers to his friend. "Whyyyyyy? Why Peter?" His words fail him, as he continues to cry, his breath labouring, causing him to eventually cough. Peter continues to comfort him as he does so, trying to answer his questions in the best way that he can.

"You couldn't do anything. No one could have."

"I could've stopped it. Don't tell me that I couldn't have done anything." The tears stop falling and his face turns to anger, his eyes turning intense, his left fist forming. "Dammit, I could have stopped this." He slams his fist down on the table, only causing Aaron to jump up, startled by the noise.

"Well, you can't do anything about it now." Peter begins to grow upset. The bartender can only deduce that Sirius is stubborn.

Peter reaches inside his pocket, eventually revealing a wooden stick only in the sight of the bartender, hidden from Sirius. He waves the stick, but doesn't say anything. Though as he does, Sirius seems to come into some type of trance, no longer particularly disturbed.

Aaron and Peter make eye contact, Peter coming to some sort of realization about the bartender's thoughts. Peter ushers Sirius out of the door before Aaron can comment about paying.

But as soon as Sirius is outside and looks away, Peter flickers his wand again, this time using words as he does so, "_Avada Kedavra_!"


	3. September 5

_September 5, 1976_

It is terrible. Just awful. James is too ashamed to even make it down to breakfast in the morning. Everyone knows James loves Lily, but James himself. And everything that he said the day before ruined it. He will never be able to even talk to Lily. He will have to move on. He will have to forget about the perfect woman of his dreams.

James walks sloppily along the path to Potions. He drags his feet along, and he walks without his friends, who are too busy eating their own breakfast, not caring about his own problems. They are great friends, but Sirius never has relationship issues. And Peter… well Peter never even seems interested in girls at all.

James sighs, staring at the tiles on the floor, thinking about how his life just isn't going to be looking up from now on. If Lily isn't in his future like he always dreamed about, he isn't sure what to do.

James eventually winds up in class. He is one of the first ones there since he skipped breakfast, which means he thankfully arrived before Lily. That means she will have to be the one to react to his presence, not the other way around. He is fine with that. All he wants to do is ignore her, but he doesn't know if that is her intent as well.

She comes in a bit later, while he does his best to ignore her right away, turning his head around and fixing upon his book. He isn't sure what they will be making, though he knows she and her partner will be the ones the brew the potion as close to perfect as possible. They are a killer pair. He has Sirius as his partner and though both of them are competent in many areas, Potions is not a set thing for them. It is more scientific and requires more perfection. He likes to make his own mark on magic, and Potions doesn't allow him to do that. Still, he needs the class in order to become an Auror… his professional goal.

Lily seems quite unemotional today, as she sits down next to the brunette boy who is an epitome of a nerd. He doesn't have the glasses like James (though James is most certainly not a nerd), but in every other way his nerdy face and dull-tone expression remind James of a nerdy kid.

James sighs, watching as Slughorn walks into the classroom. Slughorn's expression is smug, and he seems delighted to be there.

"We're going to be working on the Draught of Peace today," he says cheerily. Too cheerily. "You can work with a partner is you so desire. Whomever makes the best potion will get a spectacular surprise."

James, Sirius, and Peter groan. Slughorn never gives away spectacular surprises. It will probably just be that the winner will get a phial of their own potion. And what does James need a Draught of Peace for anyways?

James and Sirius decide to work together because James worked with Peter last time, and it is only fair for James and Sirius to work together this time.

Sirius begins to gather ingredients halfheartedly, while James stands, staring at Lily. She looks awful. Something is most definitely wrong with her. And it kills James to see her like that. He believes he is the cause of her pain and he wants to do something to make it up to her, but what can he do? She'd probably be worse because of anything he'd do. She already hates him enough.

James stares upon his friend, who is just starting to add the first ingredient to the potion.

"Wait!" James tries to stop him, his eyes focused upon the Potions book. "Isn't moonstone suppose to be added first?"

"Oh yeah," Sirius says, bored. "Good catch, James."

James smiles. He knows just how to impress Lily. He will win a Draught of Peace for her. That will make her happy. That will cause her to not be so upset with him. James isn't looking for any miracles. All he wants is for Lily to have a better day. He doesn't want to see her in any pain.

"Okay," James says, ready for action, paying attention to the directions. Moonstone first, then fluxweed. Did you bring that, Sirius?"

"Whoops," Sirius says, displeased by James' sudden interest in making potions. It means he has to do more running around the classroom.

But he does it. James and Sirius's potion soon starts to look relatively good. All they need is the hellebore, which is a key ingredient that needs to be used properly to the exact amount. Luckily, James has used it before (though that's a separate story), and he knows exactly how to calculate it out. Their potion is going to be perfect. Even better than Snivellus's.

What makes it even better is Slughorn's face when he sees Lily and the nerd's potion. He is not so cheery anymore. He is disappointed in something Lily did. Maybe James will even make Slughorn a fan of his work. Slughorn always has held some type of grudge against him, though James isn't quite sure why.

James adds the hellebore and a silvery mist takes place of the scene before it. It is completed correctly. James Potter made a correct potion. Even Sirius has a smile, with glee written atop his face.

Slughorn is moving through the groups slowly, checking to see how everyone is doing. He is currently looking at Snivellus's potion, and he seems quite amused and delighted at what Snape has to offer.

James tries to contain his excitement before Slughorn makes his way to his table. "I can't believe you actually brewed something correctly," Sirius says, at least giving James assurance that he will give credit to James for the correct potion.

James wiggles his toes with anxiousness. He can't even stand still. He realizes though that Slughorn could be planning something different for the winner this time. What if the winner doesn't get a part of the potion?

James decides to take a phial and fill it up with the Draught, while Slughorn isn't looking. He stashes it in his robes, while he watches as Sirius gives him a look of 'oh, that's what this is all about.'

Slughorn moves away from Sirius. James knows he is coming closer and he is staring him down. Then, Slughorn stops his step, turns back to Lily and the nerd, and examines their potion again.

"Wonderful!" Slughorn says with joy, looking over Lily's shoulder to see the correct potion. A large smile appears on Lily's face, though James's face triumphs with disappointment. "That's perfect! Even Snape didn't get it correctly."

Lily's face erupts with even more cheer. James knows she is delighted.

"That's one of the best Draught of Peace potions I've ever seen. For brewing it correctly, I'll give you both a phial of your own potion." Of course he says it before he's even looked at James's potion.

But James sees Lily's happiness. The nerd and Slughorn really truly make her happy. That sucks. It really does. Someone else can make Lily happy.

James takes a root of asphodel, not knowing what it could do, but knowing it will make their potion wrong. He drops it in, much to Sirius's dismay.

In an instant, the potion explores, liquid going everywhere. Sirius's face holds a grin, while James stares upon his feet. It isn't going to work out. He and Lily are over and done with.

Lily looks upon his face at the instant. She is amused, but she seems to be staring down upon him. She really is too good for him.

_September 5, 1977_

"Don't even look at it?"

"Why not?"

"It'll make you think twice. Keep it hidden and only look at it once you hear about the Auror position," James whispers to his right, barely moving his lips so he will not get caught.

"I don't know," Sirius answers, doubtful. He mimics James so he will not get caught, but his speech is slower. His words come out in more of a slur as a result. "I don't think I'm going to get the Auror job. Too many family problems."

"You'll get it," James reassures him. "They don't care about family anymore. Plus, my dad'll put in a good word for you. You know he loves you like a second son."

Sirius looks down at his book. He wants to not have been such a powerful part of James's life. James is his best mate and a good person. He doesn't deserve someone like Sirius bringing him down. Any reputation with him will cause him harm. Sirius doesn't want to do that to his best mate, the best person he knows.

"Don't," Sirius says, speaking a bit louder. "I don't want to involve your family in this. It's up to me, not my dad." That's not Sirius's only reason. Sirius isn't sure if his grades are good enough to be accepted into the Auror program. He just barely passed all of the required O.W.L.S. to take the courses and N.E.W.T.S. will be even tougher. He won't be able to guess on the N.E.W.T.S. like he did on the O.W.L.S.

"Fine, fine," James answers, though Sirius can tell it's halfheartedly. He's going to ask his father for help anyways. That's what type of friend James is. If only he'd listen properly.

"I'm going to open it," Sirius declares. "After class, I'll open it."

"No," James says, his speech louder this time too. "Just wait until you hear about the Auror position. You know that's our dream, working together as Aurors. This'll make you change your mind."

"I won't know about that for awhile. I want to know I at least have a job right now."

"Mr. Black! Mr. Potter! One more word out of either of you and you will be serving detention with me tonight, even if there is Quidditch practice," Professor McGonagall threatens, her eyes giving them a stare of death.

Sirius and James quiet down, both afraid of her threat. They struggle through listening to the lecture for the next fifteen minutes until class is finally dismissed.

Sirius walks out of the classroom ahead of James, so he can open the letter. He tares it halfway before James catches up with him.

"Well at least if you're going to do it, let me see it too." Peter joins them by the time the seal of the letter is completely broken.

"We are pleased to offer you a position in the Department of Magical Games and Sports," James starts to read out loud. "The Department of Magical Games and Sports organizes events such as… blah… blah. We will need an answer due back by November 1."

"November 1," Peter questions. "That's before you hear back from the Auror department."

"Yeah," Sirius answers, already aware of the fact. When he sent in his applications, he knew he'd have to make decisions quickly. "I think I might do it."

"No," James says, his pace picking up a bit. "We're going to be Aurors together. Remember?"

"I told you I don't know," Sirius says. "I want to be able to weigh in my options. The job at the Department of Mysteries is at the top of my list anyways."

"Just how many job applications did you send in?" James asks.

"Four or five. I'm not sure." Sirius wasn't sure he'd get a job offer at all. At least he now has something to fall back on.

"Come on Peter," James says, walking faster. "We're leaving this traitor until he decides to be brave and fight for the Auror position. I'm not sure what happened to you, Sirius."

Sirius allows them to walk ahead of him. He stops walking, and he holds the letter close to him. It's nice to know that he'll have a job. It's nice to know that he'll at least be doing something. He does want to be brave like James persists… like he usually is, but he knows not to join in a losing battle. He's not going to have the grades to become an Auror, and he doesn't want anyone to push for him to earn a job he doesn't deserve. He wants it to come from his own intuition, even if that means he won't work with James.

_September 5, 1978_

Today is the day. Really it is. I am going to marry the girl of my dreams. Lily Evans. Me, the nerdy boy. Sometimes life doesn't make sense. I'm glad that it doesn't make sense in this way for me.

She makes me nervous. Waiting for her makes me nervous. If only I could've seen her before this point. At least I'd know that she didn't run off at the last minute. To hell with stupid traditions. It's just a superstition anyways. Like anything will happen if I see her in her wedding dress before she walks down the aisle.

But if she wants me to stay away from her, so be it. As long as she's marrying me, she's going to get what she wants. I'm going to do my best to prove to her that I'm worth it. I don't think that that's even going to be enough.

That's why we're here in a Muggle church, instead of partaking in the typical wizarding wedding. She wants her family included. She doesn't want them to be shocked from a wizarding wedding. Some of our guests will shock them anyways.

My parents are fine with going through a muggle wedding. They just want what's best for me. They would care more if it was my little brother, Silas, getting married in a muggle church. Not that they prefer one of us to the other. Okay, they do.

She begins to walk down the aisle, father in tow, and she looks absolutely stunning. I can barely see her face behind her veil, but it doesn't matter. The way she walks and the way her body moves to me just makes me melt. She is there for me. Me. Never in a million years would I suspect I'd even have a date with Lily Evans.

She approaches me and takes my hand, her father cautiously giving her away to me. Her hand is warm and when it touches mine, I realize my palm is sweaty. But at least we are connected together more, and I know she is serious about this wedding. She has not run away. Not yet.

"You look so handsome," she whispers to me, as the traditional music begins to fade. I realize the ceremony is about to begin and I become even more nervous.

I want to tell her that she's the one that looks beautiful… absolutely stunning, but words cannot form from my mouth. I begin to wonder if I'm even going to find the words to say 'I do.'

The ceremony starts, but I am barely conscious of what is going on in my surroundings. My heart pounds quite rapidly as I concentrate on trying to form words… at least whispers in my head. I really need to be sure that I can say something when it's my time to speak.

Eventually the time does come. I'm supposed to say, 'I do,' something that seems stupid enough. Why would I be here if I didn't want to marry her? There shouldn't be a last chance to screw it all up. Weddings make people nervous enough as it is.

"Remus," Lily whispers to me, trying to urge me on. Her eyes stare upon me forcefully. She doesn't want me to embarrass her in front of everyone. How could she even think I would do that to her? She knows how happy she makes me. She knows how I am with her.

"I do."

Lily says her 'I do' as well, and it is official.

"You may now kiss the bride."

I finally focus on her, veil off, her beautiful eyes in full focus. She places her soft lips upon my own and our lips connect, forming a kiss. I'm not sure how it is with other people, but this kiss feels pretty perfect to me.

The ceremony ends and the celebration soon begins. A whirlwind of emotions come between me and Lily and the rest of the party. I see my parents, enjoying the party, while my brother sits down in a sigh. He has always been jealous and can never be happy for anything I do.

Sirius Black dances along to the music with a blonde-haired girl, one I do not recognize. He is without, Potter, his other half, and I'm even surprised for a minute that he decided to show up. I know he doesn't like me much, but I had to invite him. I realize he probably just came for the party.

Eventually, I see Lily's sister confronting Silas, her blonde hair and pale skin matching perfectly with his similar traits. I laugh thinking that a possible relationship could come from that. They do dance together, but I know nothing further could happen between those two. My parents would strictly frown upon a relationship between their perfect son and a muggle. Even worse than a muggleborn.

Lily and I dance and talk and celebrate. We are married. Mr. and Mrs. Remus J. Lupin. Lily Lupin. How weird that sounds. But how brilliant.

The party seems to drag on for me because all I want is some time alone with my_ wife_ now. I've never liked parties too much. But I do see how happy it's making her, and I will let her celebrate as much as she wants. Her friends are mostly the ones that surround the dance floor. I'll let her be happy with them.

Because I am certainly happy with her.

_September 5, 1979_

The stabbing pains. The constant ache. He killed him. He did it. Or at least it was his fault. And the roaring headache that he has now is not even punishment enough. No, not for killing his best mate. He deserves more than torture. More. That's why he gave in to Pettigrew and let him take him away. He knows his so-called friend is a traitor and is planning on turning him in to that worthless man.

He has a plan. But he was hoping his plan would have included some time to let his head rest from the night before. It is now pounding away at his brain.

"Where are we?" Sirius asks the traitor. He tries to act pleasant around the guy, but it is even difficult to look him in the eye. At least he can claim to be still recovering from last night. That, in fact, is part of his problem.

"Dumbledore's place," Peter reveals. "There's an Order meeting."

"Okay," Sirius says, as Pettigrew leads him to a building that is most definitely not Dumbledore's home. It is huge first of all, and Dumbledore is one for modesty. Its surroundings are brush and bare, hidden amongst a forgotten forest like a secret hideaway. How stupid does Peter think Sirius is?

Pettigrew knocks on the door, still convinced Sirius is under the illusion that Dumbledore will be there to answer.

A tall blonde man opens the door, while Sirius reaches for his wand. "_Avada Kedavra_!" Sirius says, not caring if it is against the law.

A shocked Lucius Malfoy plunges to the ground his wand falling and eventually rolling on the hard wood flooring to a rhythmic pattern.

"_Avada Kedavra!_" Sirius repeats, his body now focused on killing Pettigrew. He isn't even going to wait for an explanation from that traitor.

"_CRUCIO!_" Sirius hears, as Pettigrew's body succumbs to death.

Sirius's body etches with pain, his head wanting to explode, while he wraps himself into a ball on the ground and rocks back and forth. He is finally getting what he deserves for taking a part in killing James.


End file.
